martes, marzo 17, 2015

The main talking point on day three, Stage 2 of the Absa Cape Epic was the powerhouse women’s team of Ariane Kleinhans and Annika Langvad dropping out of the top three in the overall standings due to a time penalty. Team RECM Specialized were handed the 1:13.39 penalty after going off course towards the end of the day and cutting nearly 5km off their race distance.

After reviewing the situation for a number of hours the commissaire decided 13 minutes and 39 seconds would be added to Team RECM Specialized's stage time because they rode 5km less than the rest of the field.

In addition, an extra hour was added to their stage time for not following the route markings. The time penalties mean Team RECM Specialized finished 11th on the day.

This now takes Kleinhans and Langvad out of the women's leader’s jerseys and into fourth place on the standings, with Team Ascendis Health’s Jennie Stenerhag and Robyn de Groot moving into first place in the standings.

Team RECM Specialized now find themselves 27.06,8 behind the new leaders. Third-place finishers of the women’s race on Stage 2, Sally Bigham and Christina Kollman of Team Sellaronda Hero, moved into second for the day and third in the overall standings. Esther Suss and Alice Pirard of Meerendal Wheeler – fourth on the day - are now lying in second place overall.

Super strong work

In the men’s race Jaroslav Kulhavy and four-times Absa Cape Epic winner Christoph Sauser of Switzerland (Investec-Songo-Specialized) won their second stage in a row, extending their overall lead to more than six minutes.

“Jaro was super, super strong and did a lot of work,” said Sauser about Kulhavy’s riding in front and taking the brunt of the wind. Second-placed Czech Kristian Hynek, riding with Austian Alban Lakata (Topeak Ergon) also paid tribute to Kulhavy: “Jaro is a machine … it was amazing how he was working on the front,” said the defending champion.

In a day of thrilling racing, Hynek and Lakata managed to break away with Sauser and Kulhavy at the top of the tough Nuweberg climb about 20km into the ride. For the rest of the day they were chased by the Bulls’s German/Swiss combination of Karl Platt and Urs Huber and Mutivan Merida’s Jose Hermida of Spain and Dutchman Rudi van Houts.

The Bulls finished fourth on Tuesday but still lie second overall – only 11 seconds ahead of Hynek and Lakata. Hermida and van Houts are 35 seconds further back, and the fight for the second and third podium places is sure to be fierce in the remaining five stages.

Tense battle for Absa African special jersey

Darren Lill and Waylon Woolcock, finishing sixth on the day, were the first South African team over the line on Stage 2. USN’s Rourke Croeser and Travis Walker were ninth, but retain the red Absa African special jersey, with Scott factory Racing’s Philip Buys and Matthys Beukes behind them.

Little more than two minutes separate the top three South African teams after Tuesday’s windswept Stage 2 of the Absa Cape Epic.

The Absa African special jersey has become much sought after in recent years and Woolcock made it clear it was their objective for this year’s Absa Cape Epic: “Along with Philip and Matthys we put some pressure on Travis and Rourke, and did some damage,” he said. “Today was very windy and it was not always so easy out there. We are happy to be upright still and are feeling confident for the days ahead.”

The Dimension Data Masters category is also a tight affair, with South Africans Nico Pfitzenmaier and Robert Sim (Dorma/Robert Daniel) beating Masters leaders Bart Brentjens of the Netherlands and Brazil’s Abraao Azevedo (BETCH.nl-Superior) by five seconds on Tuesday. The South Africans are now less than two minutes behind Brentjens and Azevedo in the race for the blue category jersey.